While the headlines have cooled a bit in recent weeks, voters feel more strongly than ever that the federal government is encouraging illegal immigration and that states like Arizona have the answer to the problem.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 62% of Likely U.S. Voters believe the policies and practices of the federal government encourage people to enter the United States illegally, up six points from October of last year. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Only 23% disagree and think the federal government is not encouraging illegal immigration, but another 16% are not sure.

Sixty-three percent (63%) of voters now favor passage of an immigration law like Arizona’s in their own state, despite the U.S. Justice Department’s highly-publicized lawsuit challenging the law in court. That’s a four-point increase from late July. Twenty-six percent (26%) oppose such a law in their state.

The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on September 24-25, 2010 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95%level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

How important is immigration to voters when it comes to deciding how they will cast their ballots in November? Do most voters have more confidence in states or the federal government to deal with the problem of illegal immigration, or are they closely divided on the question? Be a Platinum Member and find out.

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